Former New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones has signed a one-year, $14 million deal with the Indianapolis Colts where he hopes to compete with Anthony Richardson for the starting job.
The 27-year-old was cut by the Giants midway through the 2024 season, which was just the second season of his four-year, $160 million contract. He never materialized into the franchise quarterback he was forecasted to be when he was drafted No. 6 overall in 2019 — a spot considered drastically early by many.
During his six-year tenure with Big Blue, he completed 64.1% of his passes for 14,582 yards, 70 touchdowns, and 47 interceptions. It appeared as though he was turning a corner in 2022 — GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll’s first year with the team — when he passed for 3,205 yards, rushed for 708 more, and amassed 22 total touchdowns compared to just five interceptions.
With it, he helped the Giants to their first playoff appearance since 2016. They defeated the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card Round before crashing out against the Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional Round, prompting the organization to pay him rather than star running back Saquon Barkley.
However, injuries limited him to just six games in 2023, during which time he threw just two touchdowns compared to six interceptions. It became abundantly clear as the 2024 campaign gained steam that his tenure with the Giants was coming to an end. He went 2-8 as the starter and threw just eight touchdowns in 10 games. Following an embarrassing loss in Munich to the lowly Carolina Panthers, he was cut, prompting the Giants to finish a 3-14 season — arguably the worst in their 100-year history — with quarterbacks Tommy DeVito, Tim Boyle, and Drew Lock.
Jones was brought on by the Vikings as Sam Darnold’s backup but did not appear in a game. With Darnold signing with the Seattle Seahawks at the start of the NFL’s free-agency period this week, Jones had the option to stay in Minnesota, a room that features last year’s first-round pick, JJ McCarthy, and Brett Rypien.
It makes the Vikings a potential player for former Jets quarterback and future Hall-of-Famer Aaron Rodgers, who is also on the radars of the Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers saw Justin Fields, who started six games for them last year, sign a three-year, $40 million deal with the Jets, meaning their best chance for 2025 lies with either Rodgers or a reunion with Russell Wilson.
With the Giants searching for a bridge quarterback, the Vikings’ possible entry into the quarterback market adds one more suitor to a limited market that could see Schoen and Daboll miss out on the guy they want.
For more on Daniel Jones and the Giants, visit AMNY.com
